see the below post! this was a 2-part session with mayaan and luke...

this is beautiful mayaan:

i adore luke's mom, nicole. i've been shooting sessions with luke for about the past four years. and this year, nicole wanted to book back-to-back sessions with her good friend shauna, and her daughter mayaan. so i shot both sessions at shauna's amazing house in malibu - the idea was to get shots of each, and then some of the kids playing together....which came very naturally to them since they're crazy about eachother. 

i'll break this post into 2 parts - mayaan and luke.

this is luke:  (i love how pensive luke can be at times...very much like my son, finn)

amy phoned me from tokyo to book a session for her, tetsu and noa while they were in town a few months ago. (yes, i'm still tragically behind on blogging. hush). they were staying at the newly rennovated casa del mar in santa monica, and then were off to their 2nd home in santa barbara to enjoy a little early summer quiet time.

they actually get to make trips back and forth quite frequently since amy works for japan airlines in tokyo - as a translator for the newly hired pilots. it was great to be able to meet up with them for a shoot in the early morning....giving them (i mean amy) the rest of the day to SHOP! and you really couldn't ask for a more easy-going and calm baby - noa is amazing. she is this delicious chunk of a baby that i could just squish and cuddle all day long. and, she seems to be the perfect little travel companion.

here are a few of my favs:

i LOVE shooting maternity portraits in beautiful boutique hotels! and, i've been fortunate enough to have shot a few at the W hotel in westwood. I had an absolutely lovely time with joy and mike, who were so calm and collected for being nearly 4 weeks away from bringing a baby home. actually, since this session was shot awhile ago, they have since had a baby - a little girl named siena!

i am so embarrassed...and actually ashamed of myself for not having blogged in close to 2 months. yes, that's right. i couldn't believe it when i looked at the date either. i have no excuses. the only thing i will say is that i find myself every single day just trying to strike the perfect balance. i realize i'm not alone in this. actually, i'm going to directly quote heather armstrong (hope it's okay heather) from dooce - she posted this on her blog yesterday: "I want to be a better wife, a more conscious and present mother, a more loyal friend, and a better listener. I'd like to handle my anxiety better. I also want to be more organized because I'm tired and fed up with not being able to find anything." - this hit me like a ton of bricks. because this is how i feel ALOT of the time.

i find that i'm giving much less than 100% of myself to so many different people and things. i'm trying to give everything i can to my children, my husband, my business (and  my client's), my friends, my life - and it never feels like enough. it would be a complete lie if i told you i thought i was doing a decent job. i want to work very hard right now to manage my time better, and be a better person overall....to try to give more of myself while also taking better care of ME. 

sitting on my bookshelf here are many many books that i would love to have the time to read. but most importantly are a few books i noticed in nate's a-store yesterday: "the 7 habits of highly effective people", "getting things done - the art of stress-free productivity", and "the 4-hour workweek".  this is my new homework - to learn how to not feel so overwhelmed by it all.

so, please forgive me. i have so many amazing sessions to blog, and now that we're back from our summer trip (nyc and boston last month), i do promise that they will all be posted very, very soon. thanks for stopping by!

EDITED TO ADD: i guess it's not really so fair to post without photos...so here are a few from our east coast trip last month! the first leg of our trip was spent with my in-laws in new york . they live in the woods about 90 miles north of the city, and it is just the kind of place you want to take your small children and spend entire summers. we then drove to gloucester (by way of connecticut ,where my husband grew up). and spent 7 heavenly days with our best friends and their kids on the beach in gloucester. here's just a few photos:

well, i know that my parent's are going to phone me moments after reading this blog post and say "really, really? do i really get a third grandchild...maybe? and maybe possibly that little girl i've been asking for?". so here goes (and no, i'm not pregnant by the way)...

i was SWOONING over these 3 little girls...abigail, georgia and natalie. it was dangerous territory for me. not only because they were little girls vs. little boys, but because they were lovely, beautiful well-behaved little girls that made my heart go pitter-patter. it's no secret really that i would LOVE to have a little girl. it's the having three total children whilst running after two amazing and very active little boys that terrifies me. so as much as i loved hanging out with these little dolls - all 3 of them - i think it's going to be awhile before i even consider the challenge ;).

now, let me start off by saying that this mother is an absolute saint. this shoot was awhile ago, so i'm sure they've made tons of progress on the house by now. but when i was there, she had three small girls to keep after, had just moved one month prior.....and they were in the process of demo-ing their entire new house for a remodel. amazing, huh? she's my idol. i had an absolutely lovely time with this family....here are a few of my fav's:

this was an absolute dream of a photo shoot. the last time i saw charlie and sam for a session was about four years ago....and these boys are every bit as charming now as they were back then. this family is so relaxed, so carefree, and an absolute delight to spend the afternoon with.

one of the things i tell my client's with older children is that they can feel free to wander off and let me hang out with the kids by myself - it enables me to make a connection with them....really get to know them. and it also allows them the freedom to be themselves and not feel that they are under any pressure to "perform" for me.

so this was like the best playdate ever with these guys. of course, i'm partial to boys and brothers...having two of my own. i just kind of "get" it....that whole boy thing - i totally dig it. beth and pk wandered in and out of our session at the absolute perfect moments - as much as i love capturing kids doing their own thing, it's also incredibly meaningful to document the family dynamic together. 

i had been thinking about having some photos taken of myself for quite some time. but the thought of it absolutely terrified me....being in FRONT of the camera is always something i try to avoid at all costs. but, when i saw a blog post that jasmine star made a few months ago, i immediately knew that she would be the person that i would entrust with this job. we made arrangements about a month or so ago for the shoot. and shortly after, i contacted michael norwood who so graciously shared directions to his top secret meadow. i knew it was exactly what i wanted for the location - so thank you so much michael...i am sworn to be forever indebted to you for that ;).

i can't even articulate what a pleasure this experience was....and it was 100% jasmine. that girl has so much talent wrapped up inside her, it's remarkable. she is a major superstar in the wedding photography world....and as you can see, she's a woman of many talents. another woman of many talents is vivian tran, who is not only one of the sweetest gals i've ever met, but an outstanding makeup artist. many thanks viv for beautifying me!

these images will be used in many ways...some on my website, some on my blog, and some for something fabulous to come!

what is most astounding to me is that i can no longer refer to my children's ages in months. not that i've done that in a long time anyway....but just knowing that i could was so comforting for some reason. at about 10 months, i started saying "almost a year", then that turned into "about one and a half-ish". and, now that harrison is just shy of 22 months....we've been saying "almost two" for quite some time. but, the fact that "the baby" is almost 2 years old, and finn is almost 4 years old (gives me heart palpatations just typing that) - it's really just so totally crazy. i mean, really - the time just goes by so quickly.

so i'm making it a real priority to stop and take more photos of my own children...and of course, i'll journal them here for you all to see too ;).

cash is our friends' (who also happen to be our neighbors) adorable baby. i finally had an opportunity to take a few pics of him last week when our older boys had a playdate. and there's a few shots of finn and josh too ;).

this was a really fun shoot i did a few months back down at the beach in santa monica:

i flew into las vegas last week for a one-day whirlwind trip to the annual WPPI conference. i actually hadn't planned to go, but jasmine star talked me into it ;). so, i called laura, my album designer in san francisco, and coerced her to go with me. and, i'm so glad i did because i had an AMAZING time!

i finally had an opportunity to meet kevin swan and sean from kiss, who produce the most beautiful leather albums for my clients. and also chenin boutwell, who with her husband doug, has created the totally rad actions - honestly the BEST group of actions out there in my opinion. and lastly, jessica claire, who is not only a phenomenal photographer, but also an entrepreneurial genius who invented shootsac....i don't know how i lived a day without mine.

but really, the most exciting news is that i met with a few new vendors while there, and am THRILLED to be adding some amazing new items to our product line this year. i can't wait!! and even more exciting is that i actually got to enjoy a lovely 2-hour lunch with laura at enoteca san marco (amazing!) in the venetian. so, just as laura and i were leaving to hail a cab, this crazy guy jumps out in front of me....and it's none other than my friend nate kaiser (whom i adore), and his gang of boys. catching up with him and matt sloan (whom i also adore), and meeting justin lyon (finally) and kyle barnes (any good pics kyle?), was a perfect end to a fantastic day :).

here's a fun snap of laura and myself in the kiss booth:

i met dylan's mom, shannon, at a birthday party i was shooting last winter. she had actually given my information to the mom of the birthday girl, who was searching for a photographer to shoot the party. so it all came full circle when i had an opportunity to shoot a session with dylan and his mom a few weeks ago!

here are a few fav's:

i was so excited to meet millie and lou for their session, because really, are those not two of the coolest names you've ever heard for twins? and they are so perfectly named. christine is one of those moms that's super relaxed, and makes raising babies look really easy....and she has twins! i can't even imagine the amount of energy one must have to keep up with twins. as i've mentioned before, the whole twin dynamic is just remarkable to me....and these two were just cracking me up with their twin charm. all my best to you and your beautiful babies christine!

i consider myself incredibly lucky in having such amazing clients.  jenn definately ranks as not only one of my absolute favorite clients, but also one of the kindest and most genuine people i've ever had the pleasure of knowing. i've been documenting her oldest daughter, maci's milestones since she was about one, and i recently had the honor of shooting a session with them, and the newest addition to their family, sadie.

here are just a few of my favorites: (i'll post a few shots of their beautiful album soon!)